William Hague has called for greater efforts to tackle piracy and terrorism in Somalia, as he became the first British foreign secretary to visit the country for almost two decades.
Speaking in Mogadishu on Thursday, Hague said it was vital for the security of the UK that Somalia become a more stable place.
"We need to step this up. We are not complacent about it," he said.
Hague said the appointment of a new ambassador to Somalia, Matt Baugh, underlined Britain's commitment to the country.
In three weeks’ time the British government will host an international conference on Somalia in London, attended by more than 40 countries and international organisations.
Hague said the summit was designed to generate a "more effective and concerted international approach" outside Somalia that addresses the root causes of the conflict.
"One of the objectives of our conference in London is to strengthen counter-terrorism co-operation to make it easier for countries in this region to disrupt terrorist networks, to disrupt their financing and the movement of potential terrorists," he said.
Somalia has been riven with internal conflict for years, and the Press Association reported that concern for Hague's safety meant he had to make the 10-minute drive from the Amisom base at the city's airport to the presidential residence at Villa Somalia in a small fleet of heavily-protected armoured vehicles.
In November, Hague told parliament. he wanted to seek "intensified international action" in the country. The foreign secretary said Somalia was "a scene of great human suffering, but is also a base of piracy and terrorism, which exacerbate the country's plight and threaten our own security."
He warned recent gains by the 10,000-strong African Union force in the country (Amisom) had driven back the radical Islamist group al Shabaab from the capital.